Want to stop overthinking your choices? A good place to start is with Rick Rubin's infinite wisdom on how to trust yourself more.

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Taken from the @lexfridman podcast. 
Listen to the full episode here: https://youtu.be/H_szemxPcTI

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Frederick Jay Rubin, known as Rick Rubin, is a legendary music producer and former co-president of Columbia Records, co-founder of Def Jam Records, and founded American Recordings. 

As if that wasn't enough, he has also helped explode iconic hip hop acts such as the Beastie Boys, LL Cool J, Public Enemy, and Run-DMC. However, his talents supersede genre, as his producing portfolio includes some of music's biggest names like Johnny Cash, Metallica, Kanye West, Jay-Z, The Strokes, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and the list goes on and on and on...

I'm not suggesting that you're capable of doing more than you can do, but whatever it is that you can do, if you've given all of yourself to it, you've done your best, where could there be regret?

The only advice I would have would be to not listen to anyone and to do what you love and to make things that you love, whatever it is.

It doesn't really matter what anyone else thinks.

And if you have to get a job to support yourself so that you can make your art, that's fine.

You can't make art with someone else in mind.

I don't believe, I don't believe it can be good.

Are you proud of the work you've done in the past?

Or is there some engine of constant dissatisfaction, like self-criticism of I could have done better?

No, I'm pleased with the work that we did, excited to keep working, it's fun.

I don't know what else I would do with myself because I like making things, it's fun.

I feel like it's my reason to be on the planet, so I just keep doing it.

I'm extremely self-critical, So you don't have that self-criticism, harsh, like this could have been better, this...

If it could have been better, I would keep working on it.

It's like, if it could be better, it's not done.

I've done everything I can to make it the best it can be.

I did my very, if you always do, if you always give all of yourself and do your best, which you're capable of doing, you're not, you're, I'm not suggesting that you're capable of doing more than you can do.

But whatever it is that you can do, if you've given all of yourself to it, you've done your best, where could there be regret?

It seems like music has the ability to bring us so much depth in our soul that's hard to access any other way.

And without it, there would be a loss beyond the pleasure of it.

Feels like it's a window into something else.

Something that no other medium can express quite the same way.

Something about music can do it automatically.

Maybe poetry or maybe certain abstract forms can get us there, but there's something about music that really can get us there quickly.

It starts with this, again, coming in blank, like not having any preconceived ideas, being open and really listening.

Listening and not thinking about what you're gonna say next or what your opinion is, basically being a recorder and just hearing what comes in.

And then once you hear what comes in, processing that information and trying our best to do that without any of the beliefs that we might have to impact what that is.

If I ask you a question, I don't wanna hear what, I don't wanna listen to you and have any reaction happening when you're speaking and wanna be as neutral as possible.

For me, my goal is not to form an opinion, it's to understand.

So if anything, I would draw you out further and just ask questions to really understand or if you say something that somehow triggers me in a way that I wouldn't challenge you, I would ask, like, how did you find that?

Yeah, I wanna understand who the person is, And through questioning, we can usually get there.

Or through just spending time together, you find out who the person is.

It's 1 of the main jobs, my jobs as a record producer is to keep the voices away from the artist, from all of the people who are really on their side, but don't know, you know, like the, whether it be people, anyone on the business side who doesn't make things, they're excited to do their part.

You know, they're excited if when you deliver the thing, the art that you make to me, then we can start the project.

But there's nothing to sell if the art doesn't happen in the right way and it has to be protected and it can't happen on the same kind of a timetable that business can.

It doesn't, art doesn't come in a quarterly way.

The other side of it is in success, there can be a lack of reality where all of the people around the successful person just tell them everything they do is great, and then they don't have anything to bump up against anymore, or have a realistic sense of how things work, or how things measure, you know?

So both sides are really important, both avoiding the voices getting in the way and having a trusted group of, a sangha, a group of people who can say, you know, I don't know if that's as good.

And you can still, you know, say, I don't care what you think, that's fine.

You know, it helps to have, if someone who you respect tells you something isn't good enough, it's helpful.

When you know it comes from a place of love, when it comes from a place of wisdom.

100%, and not from a place of fear, not from a place of, oh, this doesn't sound like it's gonna do as well as your last thing.

The point is on this quest for greatness, are you living up to your ability?

You know, I believe we're vehicles for information that when it's ready to come through, it comes through.

And the people who have good antennas pick up the signal.

But if I'm sure you've had an experience in your life where you've had an idea for something and you've not acted on it, and eventually someone else does it.

it's not because they're doing it because you had the idea and they stole your idea, it's because the time has come for that idea.

It's being broadcast by whatever the source is.

I think we all have our own antenna for whatever it is that we, you know, maybe not everyone has tuned into their antenna to see what it is that their strength in bringing through is.

I'm lucky in that it found me because I didn't know that it was a...

It's like setting up an expectation that we really can make a great Black Sabbath record that stands alongside their best work.

I can remember having a conversation with Johnny Cash on our first album saying, we're going to make the best album you ever made.

And he looked at me like I was insane, like how could he even think that way?

He felt like he hadn't made a good record in probably 25 years and had been discarded.

You know, at the time that I met him, he was playing at dinner theaters and had been dropped from 2 labels and nobody cared.

So the idea of shifting that, reframing the experience to, to not, not just, well, let's just get in, let's just do an album, but let's do whatever it takes for it to be the best album you've ever made.

It's because it's not easy and some artists don't like it and and I've worked with some artists where it hasn't worked out where they just are not willing to do the work.


Speaker 0: I'm not suggesting that you're capable of doing more than you can do, but whatever it is that you can do, if you've given all of yourself to it, you've done your best, where could there be regret? Our support. The only advice I would have would be to not listen to anyone and to do what you love and to make things that you love, whatever it is. Make your favorite things. Be the audience, you be the audience.

Make the thing for you, the audience. It doesn't really matter what anyone else thinks. And if you have to get a job to support yourself so that you can make your art, that's fine. You can't make art for someone else. You can't make art with someone else in mind.

I don't believe, I don't believe it can be good.

Speaker 1: So what does success feel like? Are you grateful? Are you proud of the work you've done in the past? Or is there some engine of constant dissatisfaction, like self-criticism of I could have done better?

Speaker 0: No, I'm pleased with the work that we did, excited to keep working, it's fun. I don't know what else I would do with myself because I like making things, it's fun. I feel like it's my reason to be on the planet, so I just keep doing it.

Speaker 1: I'm extremely self-critical, So you don't have that self-criticism, harsh, like this could have been better, this...

Speaker 0: If it could have been better, I would keep working on it. It's like, if it could be better, it's not done. Well, it's the best it can be. I've done everything I can to make it the best it can be. And I can't do more than that.

So there's nothing to be critical of. I did my very, if you always do, if you always give all of yourself and do your best, which you're capable of doing, you're not, you're, I'm not suggesting that you're capable of doing more than you can do. But whatever it is that you can do, if you've given all of yourself to it, you've done your best, where could there be regret? It seems like music has the ability to bring us so much depth in our soul that's hard to access any other way. And without it, there would be a loss beyond the pleasure of it.

Feels like it's a window into something else.

Speaker 1: Something that no other medium can express quite the same way.

Speaker 0: I would say not as automatically. Something about music can do it automatically. Maybe poetry or maybe certain abstract forms can get us there, but there's something about music that really can get us there quickly. It starts with this, again, coming in blank, like not having any preconceived ideas, being open and really listening. Listening and not thinking about what you're gonna say next or what your opinion is, basically being a recorder and just hearing what comes in.

And then once you hear what comes in, processing that information and trying our best to do that without any of the beliefs that we might have to impact what that is. If I ask you a question, I don't wanna hear what, I don't wanna listen to you and have any reaction happening when you're speaking and wanna be as neutral as possible. For me, my goal is not to form an opinion, it's to understand. So if anything, I would draw you out further and just ask questions to really understand or if you say something that somehow triggers me in a way that I wouldn't challenge you, I would ask, like, how did you find that? You know, how did you get to that place?

Speaker 1: Form a place of curiosity. You would try to figure

Speaker 0: out the most possible. Yeah, I wanna understand who the person is, And through questioning, we can usually get there. Or through just spending time together, you find out who the person is. It's 1 of the main jobs, my jobs as a record producer is to keep the voices away from the artist, from all of the people who are really on their side, but don't know, you know, like the, whether it be people, anyone on the business side who doesn't make things, they're excited to do their part. You know, they're excited if when you deliver the thing, the art that you make to me, then we can start the project.

But there's nothing to sell if the art doesn't happen in the right way and it has to be protected and it can't happen on the same kind of a timetable that business can. It's just a different thing. It doesn't, art doesn't come in a quarterly way. The other side of it is in success, there can be a lack of reality where all of the people around the successful person just tell them everything they do is great, and then they don't have anything to bump up against anymore, or have a realistic sense of how things work, or how things measure, you know? So both sides are really important, both avoiding the voices getting in the way and having a trusted group of, a sangha, a group of people who can say, you know, I don't know if that's as good.

And you can still, you know, say, I don't care what you think, that's fine. But it helps to hear it. You know, it helps to have, if someone who you respect tells you something isn't good enough, it's helpful.

Speaker 1: When you know it comes from a place of love, when it comes from a place of wisdom.

Speaker 0: 100%, and not from a place of fear, not from a place of, oh, this doesn't sound like it's gonna do as well as your last thing. That's not the point. The point is on this quest for greatness, are you living up to your ability? You know, I believe we're vehicles for information that when it's ready to come through, it comes through. And the people who have good antennas pick up the signal.

But if I'm sure you've had an experience in your life where you've had an idea for something and you've not acted on it, and eventually someone else does it.

Speaker 1: And

Speaker 0: it's not because they're doing it because you had the idea and they stole your idea, it's because the time has come for that idea. And if you don't do it, someone else is

Speaker 2: gonna do it.

Speaker 1: It's being broadcast by whatever the source is.

Speaker 0: Whatever the source is. I think we all have our own antenna for whatever it is that we, you know, maybe not everyone has tuned into their antenna to see what it is that their strength in bringing through is. I'm lucky in that it found me because I didn't know that it was a... I didn't even know this was a job.

Speaker 2: A lot of the job also is the expecta... It's like setting up an expectation that we really can make a great Black Sabbath record that stands alongside their best work. I can remember having a conversation with Johnny Cash on our first album saying, we're going to make the best album you ever made. And he looked at me like I was insane, like how could he even think that way? He felt like he hadn't made a good record in probably 25 years and had been discarded.

You know, at the time that I met him, he was playing at dinner theaters and had been dropped from 2 labels and nobody cared. So the idea of shifting that, reframing the experience to, to not, not just, well, let's just get in, let's just do an album, but let's do whatever it takes for it to be the best album you've ever made. What would that sound like? How would that work? How much work would go into it?

Are you willing to commit to that? It's because it's not easy and some artists don't like it and and I've worked with some artists where it hasn't worked out where they just are not willing to do the work. The next, video!!

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Rick Rubin - How To Stop Overthinking